Brian Booth, acting national deputy chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, has said he is “sick to his hind teeth” and he is fed up with seeing officers being treated as “brick magnets.”
Booth is calling for riot police to be allowed to use rubber bullets and have access to water cannons as so many officers have been injured during the seven days of violent protests.
Booth has said the true number of police who have been injured is thought to be “significantly” higher.
Booth who represents 130,000 prank and file officers said, “We would like to see every technology available to officers so they are not just standing in line behind shields, being brick magnets.
“We want water cannon, CS canisters and attenuated energy projectiles (AEPs) [known colloquially as rubber bullets] to be considered for when we get into highly critical incidents and need proper dispersal equipment.”
Kevin Moore, the former Detective Chief Superintendent of Sussex Police CID said, “If you look at the tactics used by European police forces they don’t mess around.
“It’s a hot summer at the moment – they’d be wheeling out the old water cannon and sorting it all out.
“I think that the public and the government need to decide what sort of police force they want – whether they want one that’s going to enforce the law and maintain the King’s peace, or whether they want this quasi police service where we are all very nice to everyone but that is totally and utterly ineffective.”
